1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for inspecting a wiring harness to be inspected having a pair of connectors mounted on its opposite ends for correct connection. More particularly, the invention relates to a device having three modes of function: a storage mode wherein reference data are stored which represent connection specifications between cables of a model wiring harness and pins of first and second connectors on opposite ends of the model wiring harness; an indication mode wherein a target wiring harness including cables having a first end on which a first connector is mounted and a second end connected to only terminals is provided, and an indication of connections between pins of a second connector and the terminals on the second end of the target wiring harness is given on the basis of the reference data; and an inspection mode wherein a wiring harness to be inspected is provided by making the connections between the pins of the second connector and the terminals on the second end in accordance with the indication in the indication mode, and an inspection is carried out for matching between the connection specifications of the model wiring harness and the connections between the cables of the wiring harness to be inspected and the pins of the first and second connectors on the first and second ends of the cables.
2. Description of the Background Art
A conventional wiring harness inspecting device for inspecting a wiring harness to be inspected with connectors mounted on its opposite ends for correct connection is disclosed, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-176868 (1986). This device is adapted to store, in a memory portion, reference data representative of connection specifications between cables of a model wiring harness and pins of connectors on opposite ends of the cables, to compare inspection data indicative of the connections between cables of a wiring harness to be inspected and pins of connectors mounted on the opposite ends of the cables with the reference data stored in the memory portion to examine whether or not the connections of wiring harness to be inspected matches the connection specifications of the model wiring harness, and then to display the pin number of the connectors which is defective if a connection failure occurs.
However, the above stated inspecting device inspects the wiring harness to be inspected with the opposite ends on which the connectors have already been mounted and is not used to aid in mounting the connectors. Thus, the use of such an inspecting device on an assembly line for wiring harnesses is impractical and does not lead to the reduction in rejection rate of the wiring harnesses on the assembly line.
Further, the wiring harnesses for automotive vehicles are very elongated. The inspection of such elongated wiring harnesses by the above stated device might result in the increased size of the device itself.
A device for aiding in assembling wiring harnesses is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 64-72484 (1989). In this device, a plurality of light emitting points are arranged in the same pattern as an array of terminals for a connector housing, and the housing is placed on the light emitting pattern so that terminal receiving holes correspond to the light emitting pattern. A group of cores are inserted at their first end into another housing at random to form a connector which in turn is plugged in pins of the same arrangement as those of a connector to be connected in practical use. One pole of a DC power supply for lighting up the light emitting points is connected to the pins, and the other pole thereof is connected to a lead which in turn is brought into contact with a terminal at a second end of one of the group of cores to light the corresponding light emitting point, thereby indicating the terminal receiving hole into which the second-end terminal is to be inserted. This device contributes to the reduction in rejection rate at assembly, but requires another separate device for final inspection of the wiring harnesses for failure.